Capitan Bob Cass

[Clydesmom7865]

I toured with Captain Bob when I was in St. Martin last month on a cruise. In addition to being "handed off" to another boat what was never advertised, is that the waters you travel through are some of the roughest out there. Had I known that I would have booked a different activity. I am not afraid of boats, water, and am an experienced swimmer, snorkeler, diver but the trip in between each stop had us sprayed with unbearable waves and salt water and hanging on for my life.

 

The guys on the boat seemed to pick up that I was not having a good time on the trips in between stops and kept asking and offering alcohol but I was too afraid to let go and even enjoy that.

 

Lunch was one of the best meals I had on the whole trip (grilled red snapper) but the guides spent almost 3 hours at that stop instead of departing in a timely fashion. We were all back on the boat blowing the horn for them to come on and they too another 30 minutes to come back. It seems their plans were more important than ours.

 

We did stop at Sunset Beach but there were no planes. This is when the guides explain that most flights are between 11 and 2 pm. We were there at 3:30 ish. Umm really? Why would you go when you know most flights are over for the day? It would make more sense to put that stop during peak flight times since people are interested in seeing the flight path.

 

The yacht tour was amazing and the amount of money they represent is something I can't even comprehend. The stops gorgeous, although due to poor planning and time management too little time in some stops and way too much in others. Swimming with the sea turtles was great too.

 

The biggest concern though was time. Thankfully I had a watch. Our ship was leaving at 5pm and the guys kept swearing we would be back by 4pm. Something in my gut told me they were wrong and I was unfortunately right. We got back to the pier at 4:35 and RAN for all we had for the ship. Had another couple not taken all my gear and her husband stopped the gangway I would have missed the ship! They pulled the gangway up behind us!! :eek:

 

My best suggestion is if you are on a cruise and your ship leaves before 6:00 pm then this all day excursion is not for you. The time alone will be too tight and the risk of missing the cruise ship is not worth it. It seems that Captain Bob has become more of a marketing guy and subcontracts out a lot of his business. It is hit or miss whether you get someone good and reliable or an experience that you would rather not remember and a major scare and expense of potentially missing your cruise ship.

[SissasMomE]

I toured with Captain Bob when I was in St. Martin last month on a cruise. In addition to being "handed off" to another boat what was never advertised, is that the waters you travel through are some of the roughest out there. Had I known that I would have booked a different activity. I am not afraid of boats, water, and am an experienced swimmer, snorkeler, diver but the trip in between each stop had us sprayed with unbearable waves and salt water and hanging on for my life.

 

The guys on the boat seemed to pick up that I was not having a good time on the trips in between stops and kept asking and offering alcohol but I was too afraid to let go and even enjoy that.

 

Lunch was one of the best meals I had on the whole trip (grilled red snapper) but the guides spent almost 3 hours at that stop instead of departing in a timely fashion. We were all back on the boat blowing the horn for them to come on and they too another 30 minutes to come back. It seems their plans were more important than ours.

 

We did stop at Sunset Beach but there were no planes. This is when the guides explain that most flights are between 11 and 2 pm. We were there at 3:30 ish. Umm really? Why would you go when you know most flights are over for the day? It would make more sense to put that stop during peak flight times since people are interested in seeing the flight path.

 

The yacht tour was amazing and the amount of money they represent is something I can't even comprehend. The stops gorgeous, although due to poor planning and time management too little time in some stops and way too much in others. Swimming with the sea turtles was great too.

 

The biggest concern though was time. Thankfully I had a watch. Our ship was leaving at 5pm and the guys kept swearing we would be back by 4pm. Something in my gut told me they were wrong and I was unfortunately right. We got back to the pier at 4:35 and RAN for all we had for the ship. Had another couple not taken all my gear and her husband stopped the gangway I would have missed the ship! They pulled the gangway up behind us!! :eek:

 

My best suggestion is if you are on a cruise and your ship leaves before 6:00 pm then this all day excursion is not for you. The time alone will be too tight and the risk of missing the cruise ship is not worth it. It seems that Captain Bob has become more of a marketing guy and subcontracts out a lot of his business. It is hit or miss whether you get someone good and reliable or an experience that you would rather not remember and a major scare and expense of potentially missing your cruise ship.

 

The waters are not rough - it's the time of the year that you chose to cruise. December, January, and even February can be cold and rough. That has nothing at all to do with Capt. Bob. Also, you are on a speed boat. You are going to get sprayed with water. Our ship left at 5pm, and Capt. Bob has us back WELL before that time. We even had time to do some shopping.

Edited February 12, 2013 by SissasMomE

[Clydesmom7865]

The waters are not rough - it's the time of the year that you chose to cruise. December, January, and even February can be cold and rough. That has nothing at all to do with Capt. Bob. Also, you are on a speed boat. You are going to get sprayed with water. Our ship left at 5pm, and Capt. Bob has us back WELL before that time. We even had time to do some shopping.

 

Apparently you can't read. I NEVER said it was Captain Bob's fault about the water. I said had I been told I would have chosen another excursion. THAT is his responsibility to his customers. I was NOT with Captain Bob at all. All he did was take my money when I booked the tour and point to another boat the day of the trip. It wasn't a speed boat either. I was handed off to someone he subcontracted to who had a dive boat NOT a speed boat. While Captain Bob may have got YOU back to the pier in plenty of time the people he subcontracted us out to did NOT. Anyone doing business with one of his subcontractors should beware because they are not likely to deliver the same level of service and since BOB is the one who contracts them that reflects directly on him. Booking with Captain Bob is a buyer beware purchase regardless of whether you agree.

[Shazambilo]

I would have to agree with some of the others. We did Capt. Bob's last month and we were on the dive boat. As said earlier, Capt. Bob took our money and that was it. The water was very rough. We were at Maho beach for 2 minutes. Most of the tour was watching the driver pull the anchor on the beach. I will say that the lunch was good. Overall I enjoyed the tour, but only once.

[SissasMomE]

Apparently you can't read. I NEVER said it was Captain Bob's fault about the water. I said had I been told I would have chosen another excursion. THAT is his responsibility to his customers. I was NOT with Captain Bob at all. All he did was take my money when I booked the tour and point to another boat the day of the trip. It wasn't a speed boat either. I was handed off to someone he subcontracted to who had a dive boat NOT a speed boat. While Captain Bob may have got YOU back to the pier in plenty of time the people he subcontracted us out to did NOT. Anyone doing business with one of his subcontractors should beware because they are not likely to deliver the same level of service and since BOB is the one who contracts them that reflects directly on him. Booking with Captain Bob is a buyer beware purchase regardless of whether you agree.

 

You have to be told that the water is rougher in the winter?! Sounds like you didn't do your research, and are blaming someone else for it.

 

As with any excursion, it is important to book early. The web site clearly states he does not pack people into his boats. First booked = with Capt. Bob. It's just common sense. Even before I ever went on an excursion with Capt. Bob, my very first question was "will we be with you?". That assured that 1 - we would be with him and 2 - if the answer was no, he would have told us and I could have made my decision from there. You dropped the ball. Plain and simple. I think it's horrible that you're trying to ruin a man's business by posting this nastiness here. He's a good person and tries very hard to please everyone. From your tone, it is obvious that some people can't be pleased - no matter what.

[SissasMomE]

I would have to agree with some of the others. We did Capt. Bob's last month and we were on the dive boat. As said earlier, Capt. Bob took our money and that was it. The water was very rough. We were at Maho beach for 2 minutes. Most of the tour was watching the driver pull the anchor on the beach. I will say that the lunch was good. Overall I enjoyed the tour, but only once.

 

If you cruise again in the spring or summer, try it again. You will find a different experience. I don't cruise much December - February for that reason .... but when I do, I definitely don't plan snorkel excursions because I don't really like the water rough and cold.

[ryansmom]

....they have not stopped for lunch at Pinel for a while because it was so expensive.

 

 

Actually, I was just emailing back and forth with him this week and he said the cafe for lunch at Pinel was recently closed down by the health department...that's why they go elsewhere. Which, is FINE BY ME! Don't want my family eating at a place the health department doesn't deem 'safe' :eek:

 

After "talking" with him this week, we are looking forward to our trip here!

[LadyDivot]

We got of the Allure last week and our excursion with Captain Bob was the highlight of our cruise. We had enough folks from the NCL and RCCL ships that we needed both Captain Bob's pirate boats. Captain Terrell and Captain Bob stayed together for the day and we had a BLAST! Captain Bob was very professional and really made the excursion a fantastic experience. The weather was perfect too and the waters were calm. Frankly, the best part of the trip was flying through the sea at amazing speeds. What a rush! Captain Bob is a very experienced and cable skipper.

 

We went to two snorkel stops (one with turtles), Pinel Island for a short stop, and then a fantastic fresh lunch practically on the beach. The snapper was delicious! We got a special stop with some very friendly fish, and then stopped at Maho beach and saw several planes land and take off from the water. We got back to the pier in plenty of time to walk back to the ship and even do a little shopping. It was a fantastic excursion and if we get back to St. Maarten, we'll use him again! Highly recommended.

 

Pam

[Lynne&Barry]

I am so happy to see Captain Bob post here. We are so looking forward to our day with him on March 2. It is unfortunate that a few people posted negatively about his trips because the vast majority rave about it. From what I have read on reviews and our emails back and forth, he puts his heart and soul in his work. We can't wait to spend the day with him!

[gold1959]

Dear Capt. Bob,

Thank you for your reassuring post!

My husband and I have booked an excursion with you that's coming up very shortly, and we are very excited! It looks like it will be a wonderful day!

Elisse & Dan

[phillygirl2400]

To all that have posted reviews here, my thanks,

 

I would just like to correct a few things here.

 

I am personally involved with every passenger that books with me. I meet every passenger at the dock and introduce him or her to the captain that is going to conduct the tour. Unfortunately I can not be with all of the people who want to do this extremely popular tour. I wish I could but that is impossible. All of my captains are personally trained by me to offer exactly the same tour with the same quality of service. I do not "sell " my tours to other companies but I do work with partners, But again I am involved in every phase of the tour.

It seems to me that as long as you have exactly the same tour it shouldn't make a difference.

I see every passenger out on the sea and almost always at lunch as well and am constantly checking to see that everything is going as planned. The vast majority of my passengers that are not with me personally are more than happy. That's 100's of happy customers that post all of the time.

 

All of the boats in our fleet are of a similar style and speed and power. All are maintained to my standards and fast and safe. The "dive" boat in question is our most comfortable with the most shade and the driest. It has brand new motors and is just as fast as the other boats if not faster. We can't always go full speed so some might think it is slower but it is not. It is often requested by return passengers.

 

Any issues that can be resolved by me have been resolved and be sure that we have NEVER had a passenger miss the boat. EVER! We would not be in business if we did.

 

I hope this explanation will help with understanding my commitment to providing the most popular tour in St. Martin for many years.

 

Capt. Bob

 

Thanks for posting Capt Bob. We're looking forward to our St Martin excursion with you on Feb 27.

[VaCruzers]

I, too, am glad to see Capt. Bob posting directly here for I know that should he not deliver what he promises, CC members will share first hand knowledge regarding his lack of accountability. I don't mean anyone ill will, but tour operators should be help accountable for their business. When planning excursions outside one's local area, tourists rely on information provided by the tour operator as well as guests of the operator to make informed decisions. We made a poor one in choosing Captain Bob's tour and I posted to help others not make the same mistake I did. Granted, some appear to be receiving the promised experience, but others are clearly ( as evidenced by more than one poster ) being subcontracted out where Capt. Bob is not controlling the day, and , therefore, not fulfilling the promised experience. It's disappointing to have a long awaited expectation spoiled.

[CarolRick]

We were on the excursion with Clydesmom. We were late getting back. We made the ship with no time to spare. And we did not see any planes at Maho. It was rough but, in my opinion, not unsafe.

 

But we had a great time - the stops were fabulous. Started the day with a "Dutch Breakfast" - a cold Heinekens. We thought the two captains (Fab and Gervais) did a great job. They were very concerned about safety.

We have been to St Martin's at least ten times and this was our favorite tour.

 

It was a great trip and we have booked again in April with a large group. The only thing I would ask to be different is to get us back at 4 PM. This was as close as we ever came to missing the ship. But it was exciting and we felt very good running up the pier. As you can see, since we booked again,we highly recommend Capt Bob's tour.

[tasbm1]

Capt. Bob,

My DH, DS and I are booked with you on April 2nd. I am excited to meet you and look forward to our trip with you! See you April 2nd! :D

Terri M.

[divadouble]

We cruised with Capt. Bob in Jan. 2013 from The Gem, NCL. He was great with e-mails, very quick responses, answering all questions. We did not cruise with him, because someone in our group of 4 asked for a child free tour. This actually worked out better for us. We were 8 altogether and were treated to high speeds on the seas by Michael,:D our crazy Czech captain. We were gigling like school girls..it was so much fun. We went to a snorkeling area, where it was pretty murky and only saw one turtle, but it was an overcast day, so that can't be controlled. We also went to all the sights promised, including an amazing lunch on the beach, a walk around exploring on another island (we walked through the water from the boat, bring water shoes) and seeing the planes land almost on our heads near the airport. Throughout we ran into Capt. Bob who made sure we were ok and all was well. We even had time when we got back to explore the shopping area of St. Maarten before heading back to our ship and bring back some great souveniors. We had alot of fun and would recommend this to anyone!

[funNsun4me]

Capt. Bob,

 

Was getting a little worried reading some of these posts and was very glad to see you chime in, I feel much better now. My BFF and I will be sailing with you on March 11th and we have been very excited since we booked this excursion with you many months ago. Hoping for great weather and even better times :D

[ChosenOne]

We will be seeing Capt Bob in 9 days! Can't wait!

[Lynne&Barry]

We will be seeing Capt Bob in 9 days! Can't wait!

 

We will have a blast!!!!! Can't wait!

[CarolRick]

Dear Capt. Bob,

Thank you for your reassuring post!

My husband and I have booked an excursion with you that's coming up very shortly, and we are very excited! It looks like it will be a wonderful day!

Elisse & Dan

 

You will have a great day.

This excursion is the best one in St Martin's. You will get to see the Island from a different perspective.

I saw on the news yesterday that the world's largest yacht, the Eclipse, was in New York City. Last month it was in St Martin's and we drove along side it on Capt Bob's excursion. Cost $1.5 billion - has a 70 foot submarine on board and a helicopter with an elevator. Cost $50 million a year to operate.

There a lot of other fantastic yachts there including one of Oprah's.

[LadyDivot]

Wow! A helicopter with an elevator?!? That is amazing! ;)

 

The Eclipse was not there when we were out with Capt. Bob but we saw some other gorgeous yachts. You will enjoy the excursion a ton!

[Clydesmom7865]

We were on the excursion with Clydesmom. We were late getting back. We made the ship with no time to spare. And we did not see any planes at Maho. It was rough but, in my opinion, not unsafe.

 

But we had a great time - the stops were fabulous. Started the day with a "Dutch Breakfast" - a cold Heinekens. We thought the two captains (Fab and Gervais) did a great job. They were very concerned about safety.

We have been to St Martin's at least ten times and this was our favorite tour.

 

It was a great trip and we have booked again in April with a large group. The only thing I would ask to be different is to get us back at 4 PM. This was as close as we ever came to missing the ship. But it was exciting and we felt very good running up the pier. As you can see, since we booked again,we highly recommend Capt Bob's tour.

 

Hi guys! I can't stress enough that if it hadn't been for Carol and Rick I would have missed the boat! Without their help I would have been watching the ship leave the pier. THANKS AGAIN. :) That is cutting it WAY too close as far as I am concerned which is the reason I said that anyone whose ship is leaving before 6 pm should reconsider the all day excursion because of how close we cut it returning.

 

Anyone who actually read my initial review clearly understands that I in no way blamed Captain Bob for the water condition I only said had I been told that was the normal conditions that time of year I would have booked a different activity. Despite all the questions I asked this was never indicated in any of his emails. While the water may not have been too rough for many people, it took me two days of muscle relaxers, pain killers, and the hot tub to recover from the back and should pain from hanging on. Carol and Rick were fortunate to have the seats in the back with support and seat backs. The seats only held 4 and the rest of us were left clinging to ropes and davits to keep from slipping off the benches.

 

I also had no problem with the guides other than them returning us WAY too close to the ship's departure time knowing what time we were expected on board. The lunch was great and the stops beautiful but had I known how rough the trip was in between the stops and I would almost miss the ship's departure I would have booked something different.

 

What is most disappointing are the people who believe they should attack anyone who doesn't share their glowing opinion and then attempt to bully them into changing their review. I will not succumb to that. I reported my opinion of how my tour went. Anyone choosing to book a tour can read all the reviews and decide for themselves whether or not to book. Having a negative opinion about aspects of a tour isn't attempting to "destroy someone's business" I have not asked for money back or any other compensation. I paid for an excursion and I received one. I didn't threaten to write a negative review unless I received something either. I expressed my opinion and if you don't agree with it then by all means book another tour with Captain Bob. I will not be.

[Clydesmom7865]

If I may offer some further explanations.

 

I am directly in control of all the passengers that book with me. I am always on the dock to meet and greet my passengers. I do not just “take your money and pass you off to another boat.” I check in with each passenger and collect any balances due. Then I personally introduce the passengers to the captain that they will be with and introduce them to the boat and it's features. Then the captain will board the passengers and conduct a safety briefing and give all the necessary info about the trip.

 

At numerous times through the day I am at the same locations as the other boats and am constantly checking to see that everything is going well. I check with the captain and each passenger. At lunch I again, personally come up to the table to check with all of my passengers to be sure they are happy with the boat and captain. Then again at the dock at the end of the trip, I try to be available to check again that everything was up to par.

I have NEVER been told otherwise at lunch or at the end of the day.

 

Please remember that a small capacity trip with 13 or less people with a hot, great lunch, and all the different things we offer at $99 per person is a great deal with or without me personally as the captain. There hundreds of past customers have agreed as you can tell by the amount of happy people posting and coming to my defense here on Cruise Critic and leaving perfect reviews on Tripadvisor.

 

I take each and every comment seriously and constructive, important criticism is addressed by me, whether it is a comment about the boat or the captain.

 

My reputation is very important to me and I try to make each excursion the best of all your days on the ship.

 

As Abraham Lincoln said, You can please some of the people all of the time, all of the people some of the time but you can't please all of the people all of the time.

Respectfully,

Capt. Bob

 

Unfortunately due to when we arrived back we weren't dropped off at the pier where we departed from and we did not see you. Had we been dropped off a the departure pier we would definitely have missed the boat.

 

How much I paid for the tour isn't an issue and that has never been a complaint. I am glad that you take all feedback seriously and as a business owner I am certain you know that even negative feedback can have positive outcomes in improving services and customer relations. In my business we value negative feedback more than positive sometimes because NO person or business is perfect and there are always opportunities to improve.

 

The two recommendations I have is that if a cruise passenger is departing prior to 6 that they be advised to consider the time as ocean currents, tides, and a multitude of factors can affect how long a trip is and it may be cutting it too close to be back on board for the departure. The second would be that noting that during specific times of the year that the waves can be much bigger and unpredictable and that those who aren't comfortable at high speeds in rough waters reconsider. A little information goes a LONG way.

[allboys27]

Our ship is in port from 12:15-8pm during the month of June. Has anyone been with Captain Bob during those hours. If so, how was it? Do you have dinner instead of lunch? Do you make the same stops?

[SissasMomE]

Our trip goes from 9:30 to 4 PM. It's not possible to do this trip if you arrive at 12:15.

Capt. Bob

 

Can't wait to see you again, and very excited for the excursion! Need anything from the states?

[allboys27]

Bummer, wish you did afternoon trips. Thanks for quick reply!